How’s August treating you so far? Is it full of adventure or are you celebrating the last bit of summer downtime?

At time of posting, I’m in the hospital anxiously awaiting the collection of cerebrospinal fluid to test for coccidial meningitis and answers as to why my body is not responding to treatment. I’m nervous, but hopeful.

Last weekend, we donated approximately 50% of our things in an effort to minimize and it has been so incredibly freeing! I really exited to continue eliminating the excess.

Here are some interesting links from around the web. Feel free to share anything neat you’ve discovered in the comments!

Quote I’m pondering: “As I look back on my life, I realize that every time I thought I was being rejected from something good, I was actually being re-directed to something better.” – Steve Maraboli

Though not a parent, I’m very much intrigued by the dynamics of modern parenting. From my (admittedly limited) perspective, I see a generation of Instagram-ready babies who are already hooked on their tablets and parents who are too distracted to spend quality time with their children. And now, women are being harassed and even arrested for making perfectly rational parenting decisions.

Did this unassuming small-town couple steal a $160 million Willem de Kooning painting? Fascinating article and video, if you have 25 minutes to spare.

At the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in northern Virginia, a rare crane named Walnut imprinted at a young age on a human keeper, which made it impossible for her to mate with other cranes. What a beautiful instance of human kindness and generosity.

In the mid-19th century, a boy was born into a wealthy family. From the beginning, the boy suffered serious health issues. Suicidal, he made a pact to take responsibility for everything in his life and work to improve it for a full year. If nothing in his life had actually improved in that time, he would know he was truly powerless to the circumstances around him. This man was William James, who would go on to become to father of American psychology.

Advice for 10-20 year olds from Patrick Collison. Lots of gems, including: “If you think something is important but people older than you don’t hold it in high regard, there’s a reasonable chance that you’re right and they’re wrong.”